Mitek Debuts Mobile Photo Account Opening

San Diego-based Mitek has announced it will debut what it is calling Mobile Photo Account Opening on Tuesday at Finovate in New York.

Known for its products centered on mobile remote deposit capture – where it provides technology to many leading banks and credit unions – Mitek has been on the hunt for more ways to leverage its imaging patents and the robust photography capabilities on smartphones.

In that vein, last year Mitek rolled out Photo Bill Pay, intended to let consumers pay bills by snapping pictures of them.

The rationale for the account opening: “It solves a real pain point,” said Scott Carter, Mitek’s chief marketing officer, in an interview.

“It’s a horrible experience, applying for a checking account on a mobile device,” he added. “There’s a lot of abandonment – at least 25%, some institutions report over 50%.”

The problem is that inputting lots of data on a phone is tough, between the small keys on glass and the tiny screen size.

Thus the Mitek idea of using the phone’s camera for data entry. “A picture is worth a thousand keystrokes,” said Carter. “Snap a picture of a driver’s license and that can populate a lot of the application.”

“We can bring in other types of forms such as a W2,” said Carter.

He added that the cherry on this sundae is that “the consumer can fund the account by snapping a picture of the front and back of a check.”

Carter estimated that applying for an account this way will typically “take under one minute.”

As with other Mitek products, Mobile Photo Account Opening will primarily be sold through the company’s channelpartners, with Mitek handling direct sales to a select group of institutions.

Carter explained the product’s pricing this way: “We will have an annual license fee, but the majority of the pricing will be per transaction. That will be important to small credit unions.”